Thursday, May 13, 2010

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s year-round music education program, OrchKids, will be featured on CBS’ Emmy Award-winning news program “60 Minutes” this Sunday, May 16 at 7 p.m. The “60 Minutes” segment profiles OrchKids and other music education programs, such as the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA), which have been inspired by El Sistema—the Venezualan Orchestral training program that in 30 years has transformed the lives of hundreds of thousands of children in that country’s most impoverished areas.

About OrchKids
OrchKids is a year-round after-school program designed to create social change and nurture promising futures for youth in Baltimore City neighborhoods. Under Music Director Marin Alsop’s artistic leadership and direction, OrchKids is a cornerstone of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s efforts to expand the Orchestra’s relevance within the City’s broad and diverse community. In collaboration with several community partners, OrchKids provides music education, instruments and mentorship at no cost to Baltimore’s neediest youngsters. OrchKids is intended primarily to address the most pervasive social challenges affecting underserved youth, using music to cultivate fundamental life skills such as self-expression, cooperative learning, discipline and creativity. With assistance from The Family League of Baltimore City, the BSO has implemented several assessment tools to track if OrchKids participants are achieving social, academic and musical outcomes.

Now in its second year, OrchKids serves more than 150 pre-K through second grade students at Lockerman Bundy Elementary School in West Baltimore. Under OrchKids Program Manager, Dan Trahey, students receive classroom music instruction during the school day twice weekly and after-school sessions four days a week from 3:30-6 p.m. A typical after-school session begins with a healthy snack and includes classroom music instruction, group instrument lessons and tutoring assistance. OrchKids frequently have the opportunity to take field trips and attend concerts performed by the BSO as well as other cultural events in the region.